How to freeze panes in Excel
Keep a header row or an ID column on screen while the rest of the sheet scrolls, using View, Freeze Panes.
On a long table, the header row is the first thing you lose when you scroll. A column of figures with no label above it is hard to read, and it is easy to type into the wrong column.
Freeze Panes pins part of the sheet in place. The command is simple; the part that trips people is choosing the right cell when both a row and a column need to stay.
Steps in Excel for Windows
- Decide what must stay put. Usually it is the header row, sometimes the first column as well. Everything above and to the left of the split stays fixed.
- For just the header row, use Freeze Top Row. On the View tab, in the Window group, click Freeze Panes and choose Freeze Top Row. The keyboard route is Alt, W, F, R.
- For just the first column, use Freeze First Column. Same menu, third option. The keyboard route is Alt, W, F, C.
- For both, pick the cell diagonally below and right. Click the first cell that should scroll, for example B2 to hold row 1 and column A. Then choose Freeze Panes, Freeze Panes, or press Alt, W, F, F.
- Check by scrolling. A thin line marks the split. Scroll down and the frozen rows stay visible. If the wrong rows stay, unfreeze and try again with a different cell selected.
- Unfreeze when you are done. Open the same menu. The first entry now reads Unfreeze Panes. Click it, or press Alt, W, F, F again.
Worked example
Header row after scrolling to row 18
| A | B | |
|---|---|---|
| 18 | Chen | 5200 |
| 19 | Diaz | 4100 |
| 20 | Evans | 6300 |
| 21 | Frank | 3900 |
| A | B | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rep | Sales |
| 18 | Chen | 5200 |
| 19 | Diaz | 4100 |
| 20 | Evans | 6300 |
Both grids are scrolled to the same spot, with row 18 at the top of the scrolling area. Without a freeze the header has scrolled out of view, so the numbers in column B have no label. With Freeze Top Row, row 1 stays pinned and rows 18, 19 and 20 scroll beneath it.
Common mistakes
- Selecting the wrong cell for a two-way freeze. Freeze Panes holds everything above and left of the selected cell. Select B2 to hold row 1 and column A. Select A2 and only row 1 freezes, because nothing is to the left of column A.
- Freezing while scrolled away from the top. If the window is scrolled down when you freeze, rows hidden above the window stay hidden and cannot be scrolled back to. Press Ctrl+Home first, then freeze.
- Freezing too much. Freezing many rows on a small screen can leave almost no room to scroll. Freeze only the header, not the title block above it.
- Mixing it up with a split. Split, also on the View tab, creates movable divider bars with independent scrolling. It is a different command and does not lock the header the same way.
- Expecting it to travel. A freeze is a view setting for that worksheet. It does not print on each page. For repeating headers on printed pages, use Page Layout, Print Titles.
On Excel job tests
The prompt is usually plain: "freeze the top row so the headers stay visible when scrolling", or "freeze the first column and the header row". The first is Freeze Top Row. The second needs the cell below and to the right of the part that stays, normally B2.
When the data starts below a title, the header is not row 1. Select the first row below the header and use Freeze Panes, so everything above it, title included, stays in view.
Related guides
Questions
- How do I freeze the top two rows?
- Click cell A3, the first cell that should scroll, then choose View, Freeze Panes, Freeze Panes. Rows 1 and 2 stay in place.
- How do I freeze rows and columns together?
- Select the cell below the last frozen row and to the right of the last frozen column, for example B2, then choose Freeze Panes from the View tab.
- Why can't I freeze panes in my workbook?
- The command is unavailable in Page Layout view and while a cell is in edit mode. Switch to Normal view and press Esc first.
- Does freezing panes change the data?
- No. It only changes what stays on screen while you scroll.
Practice this
The free lesson Freeze panes has checked exercises for this skill in a working grid.
Practice this skill